Analysis of Human Decomposition Patterns Within the Piney Woods

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Analysis of Human Decomposition Patterns Within the Piney Woods ANALYSIS OF HUMAN DECOMPOSITION PATTERNS WITHIN THE PINEY WOODS REGION OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS _______________ A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the Department of Anthropology University of Houston _______________ In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts _______________ By Alexander S. Palermo May, 2017 i ANALYSIS OF HUMAN DECOMPOSITION PATTERNS WITHIN THE PINEY WOODS REGION OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS _________________________ Alexander S. Palermo APPROVED: _________________________ Rebecca Storey, Ph.D. Committee Chair _________________________ Janis Hutchinson, Ph.D. _________________________ Joan Bytheway, Ph.D., D-ABFA _________________________ Antonio D. Tillis, Ph.D. Dean, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Department of Hispanic Studies ii ANALYSIS OF HUMAN DECOMPOSITION PATTERNS WITHIN THE PINEY WOODS REGION OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS _______________ An Abstract of a Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the Department of Anthropology University of Houston _______________ In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts _______________ By Alexander S. Palermo May 12, 2017 iii ABSTRACT ANALYSIS OF HUMAN DECOMPOSITION PATTERNS WITHIN THE PINEY WOODS REGION OF SOUTHEAST TEXAS Alexander S. Palermo Temperature, climate, and various other environmental factors are known to affect the rate and process of decomposition, calling for region-specific visual characteristics to be identified, characterized, and implemented in decomposition templates for use by medico- legal personnel in order to more accurately estimate the post-mortem interval (PMI). This research aimed to more accurately describe and characterize the stages of decomposition undergone by four human cadavers within the Piney Woods region of Southeast Texas. Creating a more accurate template in terms of the stages and visually observable phases of decomposition proves beneficial to law enforcement and researchers alike by means of having the ability to correlate characteristics with a stage of decomposition, which can be linked to accumulated degree days and the estimation of the post-mortem interval. Major research goals included identifying visual characteristics associated with region-specific decomposition patterns occurring in human cadavers in the subtropical and humid region of the Piney Woods in Southeast Texas; as well as describing and analyzing the stages of decomposition that the cadavers undergo as well as any and all modifications or transformations that the cadavers experience. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ..............................................................................................................................iv LIST OF FIGURES...................................................................................................................ix CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION A. SUMMARY…………………….………………………….…...…………..1 B. PURPOSE OF RESEARCH……………………………………........……..2 C. HYPOTHESIS……………………………………………………………....4 D. RESEARCH GOALS……………………………………………….…........5 E. METHODOLOGY………………………………….................…………....8 i. TOTAL BODY SCORE (TBS) AND ACCUMULATED DEGREE DAYS (ADD)…………………………………….……......….......….11 F. THEORETICAL BASIS.............................................................................. 18 i. MIDDLE-RANGE THEORY.......................................................... 18 1. TAPHONOMIC THEORY................................................. 19 2. AGENCY AND BEHAVIORAL THEORY........................20 3. NON-LINEAR SYSTEMS THEORY..................................20 2. BACKGROUND INFORMATION A. DECOMPOSITION EXPLAINED…………………………........…….…24 i. STAGE ONE: FRESH…………………………………………......25 1. PALLOR MORTIS…………………………………….......26 v 2. ALGOR MORTIS…………………………………….....…26 3. RIGOR MORTIS……………………………………..........27 4. LIVOR MORTIS……………………………………....…..28 ii. STAGE TWO: EARLY DECOMPOSITION……………………..29 iii. STAGE THREE: ADVANCED DECOMPOSITION………........32 iv. STAGE FOUR: SKELETONIZATION…………...…………...…34 3. LITERATURE REVIEW OF DECOMPOSITION STUDIES IN ANTHROPOLOGY A. HUMAN ANALOGS VS. CADAVERS………………………...…......…35 B. VARIOUS ECO-REGIONS AND ENVIRONMENTS………...……..….38 i. PAST REGION-SPECIFIC RESEARCH ON DECOMPOSITION......................................................................................................39 1. SOUTHERN ARIZONA…………...………………….......40 2. INDIANA AND ILLINOIS, VARIOUS STATE.……...…44 3. DELAWARE RIVER VALLEY REGION………………..47 4. SAN MARCOS, TEXAS………………...………………...49 5. KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE………………...…..………..51 4. CLIMACTIC DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PINEY WOODS REGION AND TUCSON, ARIZONA A. ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS OF PINEY WOODS REGION, TX.............................................................................................................................................55 i. TEMPERATURE………………………………………...…….…..56 ii. PRECIPITATION AND HUMIDITY/ARIDITY…………………56 iii. ELEVATION…………………………………...……………...….61 5. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION vi A. PINEY WOODS DECOMPOSITION MODEL COMPARED TO MEGYESI ET AL. & GALLOWAY ET AL.’S DECOMPOSITION MODEL........................................................................................................................62 i. FRESH STAGE.................................................................................67 1. HEAD AND NECK.............................................. ...............67 2. TORSO..................................................................................68 3. EXTREMITIES....................................................................69 4. FRESH STAGE SUMMATION...........................................70 ii. EARLY DECOMPOSITION PHASE 1 STAGE.............................70 1. HEAD AND NECK............................................ .................71 2. TORSO..................................................................................73 3. EXTREMITIES....................................................................74 4. EARLY DECOMPOSITION PHASE 1 STAGE SUMMATION..............................................................................................................75 iii. EARLY DECOMPOSITION PHASE 2 STAGE............................75 1. EARLY DECOMPOSITION PHASE 2 STAGE SUMMATION..........................................................................................................................76 iv. ADVANCED DECOMPOSITION STAGE....................................76 1. HEAD AND NECK............................................................. 77 2. TORSO..................................................................................78 3. EXTREMITIES....................................................................79 4. ADVANCED DECOMPOSITION STAGE SUMMATION..............................................................................................................80 vii v. SKELETONIZATION STAGE........................................................80 1. HEAD AND NECK..............................................................81 2. TORSO..................................................................................82 3. EXTREMITIES....................................................................82 4. SKELETONIZATION STAGE SUMMATION..................83 6. CONCLUSION A. PINEY WOODS DECOMPOSITION PATTERNS…………...............…84 7. REFERENCES CITED..........................................................................................86 8. APPENDICES.........................................................................................................93 A. SOUTHEAST TEXAS APPLIED FORENSIC SCIENCE FACILITY TOTAL BODY SCORE RESULTS.............................................................................93 i. 2015-076............................................................................................93 ii.2016-018............................................................................................97 iii.2015-096.........................................................................................101 iv. 2016-030........................................................................................105 viii List of Figures 1. Piney Woods Region…………………….......................................…………...…………….1 2. Map of Texas………………………………………………….......……………………..….1 3. Categories and Stages of Decomposition (Megyesi et al.)…………………………….......14 4. Categories and Stages of Decomposition Continued (Megyesi et al.)…………….......…...15 5. Megyesi et al.’s Prediction Equation for ADD using TBS…………….......………………17 6. Moffat et al.’s Refined Prediction Equation for TBS using ADD………….......………….18 7. Approximate Times for Algor and Rigor Mortis in Temperate Regions……….......……...28 8. Megyesi et al. & Galloway et al.’s Decomposition Characteristics for Early Decomposition..........................................................................................................................31 9. Megyesi et al. & Galloway et al.’s Decomposition Characteristics for Advanced Decomposition …................................................................................................................….33 10. Megyesi et al. & Galloway et al.’s Decomposition Characteristics for Skeletonization....35 11. Galloway et al.’s initial template for Categories and Stages of Decomposition.................42 12. Stages of Decomposition by Time; Remains found in Open Air and in Closed Structure....................................................................................................................................44 13. Hunstville, TX Climate Graph............................................................................................54
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